Mooring buoy



Aug. '7,- 1945. H. P. BEACH, JR

' MOORING BUOY Filed June 5, 1943 2 Sheets-Sheet l i I Simian WM v HOWARD P. BEACH dR;

attached thereto;

I re-entrants ll, I2.

-; {STATES} PAT qomce v MOORINGBUOY I Howard P. Be'ach,' Jr., Washington, DiCL, assignor to The Firestone Tire & Rubber Company, .'Akron, Ohio. corporationof Ohio *2 Claims.

1 invention relates to mooring buoys; and more-especially it relates. to mooring" buoys used on the waterways for marine aircraft for the mooring of aircraft, or'forjdefining channels or lanes for day ornight use. I {Ii-1e chief objects of the invention are toprovide mooring buoysof the character mentioned that wil;l not-damage the thin hulls or pontoonsof "marine aircraft that may collide therewith;.to .provide mooring buoys that will continue *to; float .andfunction even though punctured; toprovide a'mooring buoy wherein the strain imparted by moored aircraft will be transmitted directly to the anchor of the buoy; and to provide a construction; that maintains the mooring ring atthe v.top" of the buoy substantially upright at all times.

Other objects will be manifest 'as-the description .i b e dst Y p Of the accompanying drawings: I Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a mooring buo embodying the invention, as it appears in-service,)and a seaplane moored thereto;

Fig. 215 a vertical diametric sectionjon a larger scale, of the buoy shown in Fig; 1, and an anchor Fig. 3 is a section on the lines- 3 of Fig.2;

Fig. 51. is an elevation of another embodiment if the invention, a part thereof being broken awa nadn section; I Y

5 is an elevation of still another embodiment of the invention, apart thereof being broken away and in section; and a a V g. 6 is an elevation ofyet another embodimentof theinvention. I

. rReferring now to Figs. 1 to 3 of the drawings,-

fi erefis shown a buoy structure comprising'a hollow bulbous body In composed of impervious, flexible rubber' or rubber-.like composition, and preferably reinforced with rubberized fabric. In

shape thebuoy bodyis an oblate 'spheroid, and at the poles thereof is formed with respective concavitiespr re-entrant regions II and I2 respectively. The body I 0 floats on a vertical axis, the concavity l I being at the top of the body and being of hemispherical shape. The concavity I2 is located at the bottom of the body and is frustoconical in shape. Extending axially through the buoy body l0 isa tubular stay 13 that is composed of the same material as the buoy body and is integrallyattached at its opposite ends to the The interior of the body III is divided into a plurality of separate compartments, herein shown as fourin number, by radially disposed Walls or' partitions l4, H, which partitions are united with the stay l3 and with 7 Amusements 5, 1943; serial No. 489,846

the wall of said body. Valve stems 15 in thewall of the .buoy,"at the top thereof, are provided for inflating the several compartments of the buoy, an internal pressure" of about 15 pounds being found to, givesatisfactory results. Because the internal pressure holdsthe buoy body to its normal bulbous shape, and the partitions IA constitutev supplemental means for the same purposeithe wall of the buoy body may be relatively thin, that is,f0f the order of 1% inch to inch. Mounted within the boreof the tubular stay I3 is aro'd or bolt IL'the upper end of which is formed with'an integral, .transverselyapertured "cap or head IS, the latter being located in-the concavity H. The lower end of the rod. is threaded toreceive a nut 19 that retains the rod-inassembled relation with the body l0, said nut being which ring may be connected a chain or cable 2|,

the other end .of the latter being connected to an anchor 22., P ivotally connectedto thearodcap la. through the agencyof the aperture. th'

inpis string 23 to which. the'tow rope or hawser ,-of a marine aircraft maybe connectedytomoor the craft; The ring:23 is ,located partlyin the concavity l I, but projects above thesametfor easy :accessibi1ity, the arrangement being such that the ring, when not in use, will be supportedv by themargin of the concavity and thus be maintainedinpartly upright-position.

The low inflation pressure employed in the ,buoyLserves to hold it in distended condition without rendering it hard and .unyielding. The buoy is extremely buoyant and floats high in the water, thus assuring good visibility, which may be enhanced by any suitable design painted upon its exterion The buoyancy is such that the buoy will float-and perform its normal functions even though three of its four compartments are punctured and deflated. The'construction obviates the application of strains upon the resilient structure of the buoy, and achieves the other advantages set out in the foregoing statement of objects.

In the embodimentof the invention shown in Fig. 4 th'e buoyant body consists of a hollow spherical structure 46 that preferably has a wall composed of flexible rubber composition reinforced with fabric. The wall of the structure usually is of sufficient stiffness to withstand the forces to which it normally is subjected without collapse,

sphere at the respective poles thereof, and mount- 1 i ed in said sleeve is a headed bolt 50 of bronze. The headed portion of the bolt 50, which i at the top of the buoy, is formed with a non-circular transverse aperture in which a ring 5| is received,

said ring having its end portions lapped within the aperture, the arrangement being such that the ring is incapable of pivotal movement and is maintained in upright position. Said ring constitutes means by which the mooring line of an aircraft may be secured to the buoy. The other end of the bolt 50, which is at the bottom of the buoy, is threaded to receive a nut 52 by means of which the bolt is retained in assembled relation with the buoyant member 46. The bolt 50 projects beyond the nut 52 and said projecting por-- .tion has a clevis 53 pivotally connected thereto,

which clevis carries a ring 54 to which the chain 55 of an anchor (not shown) is attached. A concavo-convex cap 56 :of thin rust-proof metal is confined between the head of bolt 50 and the surface of buoyant member 46, and a similar cap 5'! is confined between the nut 52 and the surface of said buoyant member. The buoy has substantially allthe advantageous characteristics of the embodiment shown in Figs. 1 to 3, particularly the feature of transmitting mooring strains directly to the anchor.

The embodiment of the invention shown in Fig. 5 comprises a hollow, spherical, buoyant body 60 composed of flexible rubber composition, preferably with fabric reinforcement. At the top of the buoyant body is an arcuate, handle-shaped member or fixture 6| that preferably is composed of hard rubber,zsaid member being vulcanized to the spherical body 60 or otherwise securely attached thereto. Clevises 62, 62 are pivotally connected to opposite sides of the member 6|. Onthe diametrically opposite side of the buoyant body, which it at the bottom thereof, is attached a crescentshaped member or fixture 63 that is formed with an aperture 64 therein. Said member 63 is composed mainly of hard rubber that is Vulcanized to the buoyant body or otherwise securely attached thereto, said member preferably having a facing of stainless steel plate riveted to its exposed surface. Suspended from the member 63 through the agency of the aperture 64 therein is a clevis 65 that carries a swivel 66, and suspended from the latter is a ring 61. Connected to the latter is a cable 68 that is attached to an anchor (not shown). Also connected to ring 61 are two cables 69, 69 that extend through eyes formed in the ends of respective cables 10 that are connected to the clevises 62 aforementioned. The free end of each cable 69 is formed with an eye that carries a ring 1 I, the latter preventing th'e cable from being retracted through the eye of the cable Ill. The length of the latter is such that the ring H is supported just above water level, as is clearly shown in Fig. 5. Between ring 61 and ring H each cable 69 has a counterweight l2 slidingly suspended thereon so as normally to create a bight in the cable so that the ring 1| is drawn against the eye in the end of cable 10. The rings H constitute the means by which the hawsers of aircraft are moored to the buoy, the arrangement being such that if the cables 69 are pulled taut, any strain thereon will be transmitted therefrom through the cable 68 to the anchor, thus obviating she placing of any strain upon the buoyant body The embodiment of the invention shown in Fig. 6 is essentially similar to that showin in Fig. 5. It differs fromthe latter in that the cables 10 are omitted, and in lieu thereof a pair of short cables 15, I5 are connected to the member 63, the free ends of said cables being connected to respective floats 16 of cork or other suitable buoyant material. The floats 16 are centrally apertured, and-preferably are somewhat dished on their top faces, the free end portions of the cables 69 extending through said apertures and carrying the rings H, the latter preventing retraction of th'e cables through the apertures in the floats. The floats 16 support the rings ll above the water level, substantially in upright position, so that they are easily accessible when it is desired to moor a seaplane thereto, strains imparted by the latter being transmitted directly to th'e anchor in the same manner as in the embodiment shown in Fig. Other modification may be resorted to without departing from the spirit of the invention, or the scope thereof as defined by the appended claims.

What is claimed is: 1. A mooring buoy comprising a hollow bulbous body. of resilient material adapted to float on a vertical axis, a tubular stay formed integral with said body, interiorly thereof, and radial partitions within the buoyant body formed integral with the walls of the body and the tubular stay dividing the interior of the body into a plurality of noncommunicating compartments.

2. A.mooring buoy comprising a hollow bulbous body of resilient material'ad'apted to float on a vertical axis, radial partitions interiorly of the body'i1dividing the same into a plurality of noncommunicating compartments, and valve means through the wall of the body, in a region thereof above the water-line, to enable control of the air .pressu'r ewi'th'in said compartments.

HOWARD P. BEAomJR. 

